The Commonwealth of Tredonia

The Commonwealth of Tredonia is less a consolidated nation, and more a collection of business interests bound together in the simulacrum of an actual country. It possesses a head of state, a legislative body, and a collection of laws that its citizens must adhere to. It also has formal diplomatic relations with other nations, goes to war and signs treaties, and so, to all intents and purposes, is a functional nation state.
However, power in Tredonia is purchased, not inherited or obtained from a mandate of the masses. Capitalism decides on its rulers and, in theory, anyone can garner enough wealth to lead. Although in practice, like elsewhere, wealth tends to consolidate with a select few.

Structure

The Commonwealth of Tredonia is ruled by the Council of Trade, headed by the Lord Chamberlain. The Council of Trade decides on Tredonian law, diplomatic policy, trade tarrifs, and other matters that affect Tredonia as a whole. Membership of the Council of Trade is a paid membership; any individual that can pay the annual membership fee is allowed to be a member of the Council and have voting rights, so long as they fulfil the necessary criteria; they must own, outright, business assets in Tredonia of a certain value, they must not have any titles or state-provided duties of another nation, and they must not be on a list of banned individuals, which is maintained and voted on by the Council.
The Council elects, from within its ranks, a Lord Chamberlain, who chairs Council meetings and decides on the agenda for said meetings, represents Tredonia to outside interests, acts as supreme commander of the Tredonian military forces, and casts a deciding vote, if the Council is in deadlock. The actual power of the Lord Chamberlain waxes and wanes, depending on the make-up of the Council. If the Council contains a large number of members who support the position, then they carry almost unlimited power, however, if the Council is largely hostile, then it has very little power indeed.
The Council also appoints regional governors; such governors have little power in terms of revenue collection and enforcement of the law, but represent the interests of a region, as most Council members have interests that spread across different regions. There are 12 regions.

History

In the latter days of the Orsinta Dominion, one of the divisive concerns for the ruling class was the direction to which Orsintan influence should spread. Whilst the Dominion had absolute control over the east and south of Weston, rivalry arose between those who advocated spreading Orsinta further across Weston, and into lands held by Schwarz people, or cross the straits and into more Duland areas. Further conquest of Weston would avoid future conflict with the elves and Durinn people of the plains, but would involve fighting against a fiercely independent people, something that some factions in the Orsintan leadership proclaimed as practical.
Whilst this tensions would ultimately lead to the dissolution of the Orsinta Dominion, the factions remained, and a number of commercially minded nobles in the north of the territory began exploratory missions to the west coast of Easton. Initially this was to trade with the people there, but over time trade posts became colonies, which in turn became fully-fledged towns. As the southern parts of the old Orsinta lands coalesced into the Kingdom of Orbach, the northern territories resisted, the wealth that trade with Easton had brought lent them a strength that the new Orbachians could not easily counter. More coastal areas of both Easton and Weston found themselves enveloped in this growing commercial sphere and, eventually, those in charge realised that some form of governance was required.
The Council of Trade was formed from the initial merchants, along with a handful of others who had risen to prominence. The mercenary set-up of the Council was established at the start, with the Council members wishing to show that anyone can make it in their new nation. Since the Council's foundation, the territory of the Commonwealth has slowly expanded inland from their starting coastal colonies; the rapid rise and fall of the Durinn Empire, largely at the hands of Tredonian agents, opened up inland opportunities that were too good to miss, and corrupt lords in the north of the Kingdom of Horb were convinced to pay their way into the Commonwealth in defiance of their increasingly oppressive king.
The sudden expansion of the orcish Despotate of Ash has given the Commonwealth pause; whilst the orcs are only encroaching on less valuable Durinn lands, refugees are swamping the more prosperous coastal regions and ethnic tensions are rising, not least that the refugees feel the Council is obligated to protect them and re-take their lands. The Council has been slow to respond - war is expensive, and the orcs are still far from threatening parts of the Commonwealth that matter to them. It is not an issue that is going away.
Another issue facing the Commonwealth is the new vigorous expansion of the Kingdom of Orbach. Taking a leaf from the Tredonian playbook, several Tredonian colonies were 'bought' by the Kingdom, and have switched allegiance to Orbach. The Council is protesting, but according to their own rules, the annexation was entirely legal and has raised issues regarding the integrity of the Commonwealth as a whole, if anyone can just bribe regions of it to leave.

Territories

The Commonwealth of Tredonia is a far-flung state, and prefers to see its territory as 'holdings' instead of other terms such as 'counties' or 'provinces'. The core holdings of Tredonia have been eclipsed over the years by far more profitable areas, and as such, the focus of Tredonia has moved from the northern parts of Weston, to the west coast of Easton.
In Weston, Tredonia has holdings to the north of Orbach, which were some of the first areas that declared their independence from Orstina. West of this are the holdings that were once baronies of the Kingdom of Horb, but were obtained by paying off corrupt members of the Horbian nobility, who nominally used the brutality of the Horbian regime at the time as an excuse. Both the old Orstinan holdings, and those obtained from Horb are considered historically important to Tredonia, but compared to the rest of the Commonwealth, they have a low population and low income value. Only applying tolls to the Great Weston Road and shipping profits ensure these regions bring in more money than they cost.
In Easton, Tredonia gradually took ownership of most of the north-western coast and established a trading post at the western terminus of the Great Easton Road that grew to become one of the world's major cities. The sudden growth and subsequent collapse of the Durinn Empire sparked a push inland, and now Tredonia claims ownership of the most of the lands of the Durinn, although actual control is limited. With the orcs threatening invasion, the Durinn are demanding assistance, but the Council is reluctant to get too involved, due to the large cost involved and minimal profits.

Military

The military might of Tredonia largely consists of its navy; to protect its trading fleet, Tredonia has a substantial naval presence, and it is common to see Tredonian navy ships wherever their traders go. There is no coherent naval chain of command, with most ships belonging to one of dozens of mercenary fleets that are contracted to protect a certain region, or accompany specific trading vessels. The largest of these fleets have hundreds of ships, and accusations that Tredonian ships engage in privateering of other nation's ships are common, but always denied. The leader of one of the largest mercenary navies even has a place on the Council itself.
Tredonian land forces follow a similar pattern, with mercenary groups being used to provide protection and, in rare instances, offensive military actions. The quality of said troops varies wildly, but most are the equal of any national military force.

Religion

Religion is paid lip-service in Tredonia, with most citizens performing the necessary rites and obligations required, but with little piety or religious fervour. As to be expected, Waukeen, the goddess of Trade, is extremely popular and has a large temple in Kihuter, as is Tymora, the goddess of good fortune, and Tyr is often invoked to ensure fair deals.
The worship of Talos, Shar and Bhaal is not banned, as the Tredonians are reluctant to ban anything that may offer profits, but it is discouraged. Asmodeus is secretly popular, with many offering him servitude in exchange for success, but it is not something that people admit to in public. Most of these 'deals' are extremely one-sided, and many a successful Tredonian merchant has fallen as quickly as they arose due to Asmodeus claiming his payment.

Maps

• 

  Tredonia

Founding Date

-423

Type

Geopolitical, Country

Capital

Kihuter

Alternative Names

Tredonia, CoT

Demonym

Tredonian

Government System

Corporatocracy

Power Structure

Confederation

Economic System

Market economy

Neighboring Nations

• Despotate of Ash
• Kingdom of Orbach